Our Wedding Blog

Keswick 10/16/16 Keswick 10/16/16

Roses are Red | Andra & Colt

It’s a well-known notion that most little girls grow up fantasizing about their wedding day. During the fantasizing there are several questions that run through their minds---what dress will I wear? What castle will I get married at? What prince charming will I marry?

Our bride, Andra, didn’t have any of those thoughts running through her head. She never was the type to day dream about her wedding day, but rather she spent her time riding horses on a farm. Though for as little day dreaming she did as a child she knew for certain one thing would 100% be a part of her wedding. Roses!

Red roses were her one non-negotiable when it came to Andra and Colt’s wedding on Sunday, October 16th. They wanted them everywhere. Throughout the planning process it became very apparent that having them at their ceremony was one of the single most important details of their wedding. The bride wanted a rose petal aisle…and boy did she get one!

They chose to get married underneath of Keswick Vineyard’s beautifully aged Oak tree. This ceremony location is perfect for intimate groups and brings a very garden like feel to any wedding. The setting of the tree was perfect for Andra and Colt and helped to beautifully showcase their rose petal aisle.

Along with horses, animals in general are a huge part of the couple’s life. They have a few horses and a lot of dogs (five to be specific). Originally, the plan was to have all five dogs walk down the aisle with each of her bridesmaids. After a little thought they decided that just one was enough, and Andra walked down the aisle with both her father and her boxer, Duke!

To capture these moments we had photographer Rob Garland on site. To set the tone of the night we had his brother, John Garland DJ’ing the party! We loved having the Garland brothers working together at Keswick Vineyards. It turns out the two have been family friends of Andra’s while growing up so it was only natural to have them be a part of her wedding day. It was made even more of a family affair by having the Garland’s parents also in attendance that day.

But what’s a party without great food? HotCakes outdid themselves with one of their signature fall treats. Their mini pumpkin muffin ham biscuits were a huge crowd pleaser during cocktail hour and made guests anxious and eager to hit the buffet line later. The night continued on and towards the end, seasonal pies were served with hot coffee and the newlyweds and their guests left happy and well fed!

Congratulations to Andra and Colt!

Day of Coordinator, Keswick Vineyards. Photography, Rob Garland Photography. Catering & Desserts, HotCakes. Rentals, MS Events. DJ, John Garland. Hair & Makeup, Sona Med Spa. Florist, Foxtail Cottage Floral. Lighting, Skyline Tent Company. Officiant, Peter Silberblatt.

Keswick 10/15/16 Keswick 10/15/16

Nothing Like a Mother's Touch | Kenny & Molly

On Saturday, October 15th Kenny and Molly were married! Much anticipation led up to their big day and the couple and their families both came from afar to share and celebrate with them. Many months of planning went into developing the perfect plan for Kenny and Molly’s big day. In the end, it was well worth it!

Molly’s mother did the heavy lifting of the planning. Her and her husband wanted to make sure that their daughter’s wedding not only went off without a hitch but also was one that she would be proud to remember fondly for the rest of her life. Of course, every wedding at Keswick Vineyards is remembered fondly, but Molly’s mother went above and beyond to add personal touches throughout the evening that were tailored specifically for the bride and groom.

Molly loved sunflowers. It was one of the very first things I learned about her when we first met. Naturally, sunflowers became a beautiful addition to her wedding florals and were also beautifully mixed in with other flowers in her bouquet. The bright yellow provided the perfect pop to her rich navy and sage color palate.

The navy and sage worked wonderfully together on their dining tables. Navy linens were the base for guest tables with navy lace slips over ivory napkins. (A beautiful touch). At each place setting guests had several items that all served a purpose throughout the evening. The first was their name cards, which were handmade wine cork name card holders which indicated what meal they chose for dinner service. The second was a scratch off ticket that put them in the pool for winning a prize to take home with them at the end of the night! What was that prize? Keswick Vineyard’s forever famous Viognier Reserve! The last of the items placed in front of each guest was a charity donation announcement which let them know that in lieu of favors a donation has been made in their honor.

Just like Molly’s parents, Kenny’s parents wanted to make sure that they had their hand in making their son’s wedding memorable as well! If there was anything you should know about this couple, it was that they loved pie. Pie became a big focal point for their wedding. They even replaced their wedding cake with a heart shaped wedding pie! They had their big cutting pie and miniatures for their guests to enjoy with mini Ben & Jerry’s ice creams. There was something for everyone! To attract guests towards this area (though the smell naturally did the trick) Kenny’s dad handmade a “PIE” marque sign. It was well crafted and perfect for their display!

I think it’s safe to say that they will forever very fondly remember their wedding day and all of its pie eating bliss!

Day of Coordinator, Keswick Vineyards. Catering, C&O Catering. Photography, Ruby Sky Photography. Rentals, MS Events. Florist, The Faded Poppy. Desserts, Paradox Pastry and Ben & Jerry’s. Hair and Makeup, Charlottesville Makeup Artist. DJ, Dennis Payne. Musician, Terra Voce. Nanny, Local Nanny Network. Transportation, A Goff Limousine and Albemarle Limousine. Lighting, Skyline Tent Company. Officiant, Reverend Rick Hudock.

Keswick 10/14/16 Keswick 10/14/16

Meet the McCarthy's | Tean & Kevin

Over ten years ago, back in my hometown of Herndon, VA I met the bride. Her name is Tean. Tean was friends with my older sister and I was friends with her younger brother. We all went to high school together and have years worth of memories. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that a decade later we’d all reconnect at the beautiful Keswick Vineyards where I’d then be helping her plan her wedding to the love of her life, Kevin!

Kevin and Tean were married on Friday, October 14th. With our close ties to one another they, of course, hired us to be their day of coordinators! Just as all of our couples know, they knew that we’d take care of them and help make their wedding dreams a reality.

Tean and Kevin have been together for 8 incredible years. During those eight years they’ve had time to make memories and develop a deep and forever bond. As part of their marriage ceremony they wanted a way to symbolize just that, their deep and forever bond. They decided that the perfect way to do so would be to incorporate a wine box ceremony into their wedding day.

During wine box ceremonies, each couple is tasked with hand-writing a letter to one another. After exchanging their vows to one another, the couples seal away their letters into a box that contains one bottle of wine. You are to open that bottle of wine on your 1st, 5th or 10th anniversary and enjoy the wine while reading those letters. But, if before that, you hit a rough patch in your marriage, you are to open that box, have some wine and read those letters to remind each other why you fell in love with each other. Reading the words that were written for you by the love of your life on your wedding day will get you through that hump and bring you back to one of the happiest days of your life.

You’ll then remember what is the most important. Each other. You’ll forget the silly little argument you two had and remember the reason why you vowed “for better or for worse”.

Tean and Kevin, we are so fortunate to have been able to share that day with you both. Best of luck to you both, many happy years, and (hopefully) decades until you feel the urge to crack open that sealed box of wine!

Day of Coordinator, Keswick Vineyards. Caterer, Harvest Moon Catering. Photography, Jessica Smith Photography. Officiant, Claire Goodman with Sacred Ground Ceremonies. DJ, Chris Rice with Music Makes You Happy Entertainment. Lighting, Skyline Tent Company. Hair & Makeup, Ashley & Leah. Florist, Hedge Fine Blooms. Desserts, Ashley Soloman.

Keswick 10/8/16 Keswick 10/8/16

Hurricane Matthew | Kari & Harrison

Anyone who turned on the news knew that Hurricane Matthew was approaching. For all of Charlottesville, wedding professionals were also playing storm watchers in anticipation of their weekend’s weddings. In preparation for our upcoming wedding on Saturday, October 8th, that is exactly what Keswick Vineyards was doing!

Despite the pending hurricane, you could not keep the smiles from Kari and Harrison's faces. This storm definitely did not damper their moods. They relished in the fact that they were finally getting married (after having booked with us over two years ago!) They had the right attitude and that is what's most important!

With the misty and unpredictable weather forecast, the couple decided to make the best of what they had to work with and divided the tent. In doing so, they created a warm and intimate environment on what could've been a very dreary day. Half of the tent was sectioned off for the ceremony. They were able to have full church style seating on one half of our Sperry tent with their guests facing towards the vineyard. How beautiful! The other half of the tent was designated for formal dinner seating. Dividing the tent in the way they did brought a cozy element to their wedding that I'm sure guests weren't expecting on such a temperamental weather weekend. Let's just say they proved them wrong! Their layout and perfectly fall decor definitely kept the chill away from the storm.

After the weather cleared, Kari and Harrison were able to go out into the vineyard and capture beautiful photos! Storms don't stay around long here with the mountain helping to break up those less than favorable weather patterns. With the weather cooperating so much, even one of our vineyard cats Indy decided to join the couple and their wedding party for some photo fun! The couple remembered one of our other vineyard cats, Scraps, from back when they first toured the property. Seeing Indy during their photos was a nice surprise to these cat lovers! They loved having both Indy and Scraps present on their wedding day.

The moral of the story is this...with the right attitude greatness is achieved! Congratulations again to Kari and Harrison!

Catering, Roadside Chive Catering. Photography, William Walker Photography. Videographer, Hoopla Media Studios. Rentals, MS Events. Florist, Whimsical Floral Design. Hair & Makeup, Avenue 42 Salon. DJ, Andy Wilfong. Desserts, Favorite Cakes. Lighting, Skyline Tent Company. Officiant, Robb Jacobson. Transportation, A Goff Limousine & Bus Company.